Choose Responsibility is a nonprofit organization founded to promote public awareness of the dangers of excessive and reckless alcohol consumption by young adults through a program of research, publication, education, and related activities.

Choose Responsibility seeks to stimulate informed public discussion about the presence of alcohol in American culture and to consider policies that it believes will effectively empower young adults age 18 to 20 to make mature decisions about the place of alcohol in their own lives.

The organization argues that alcohol is a reality in the lives of young Americans and that it can’t be denied, ignored, or legislated away.

For this reason, Choose Responsibility supports a series of changes to treat 18, 19 and 20 year-olds as the young adults the law otherwise says they are. It believes that current drinking laws infantilize young adults and promote immature behaviors.

The organization supports a series of changes designed to allow 18-20 year-old adults to purchase, posses and consume alcoholic beverages.

Choose Responsibility proposes a multi-faceted approach that combines education, certification, and provisional licensing for 18-20 year-old high school graduates who choose to consume alcohol.

It proposes a comprehensive program that combines incentives and rewards for responsible, lawful behavior by adolescents, and punitive measures for illegal, irresponsible behavior.

The founder and Director of Choose Responsibility is Dr. John M. McCardell, Jr., President emeritus of Middlebury College.